You may have recently seen or heard about the parenting program Parental Guidance that recently aired on Channel 9 with Dr Justin Coulson. Regardless of what you thought about the show, there was one specific topic that was raised that was extremely important. Parents talking with children about safety is a critical role that you have as you guide your children through to adulthood. It can be challenging to know how to tackle this topic in a way that doesn't cause anxiety for your child, but empowers them to take control of their own boundaries when it comes to their bodies and their wellbeing. 

By now you may be aware of the child safe standards that are now mandatory for all schools and organisations across our community who work with children and young people. This doesn't automatically mean that children will be safe. They still need to be protected and to be made aware of their rights and boundaries when it comes to their own safety.

In this article by Dr Justin Coulson, he breaks down some of the ways you can discuss personal safety with your children.

Your school will also be teaching children about child safety through various programs such as the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum, Allanah and Madeleine Foundation and other wellbeing and self management programs such as ReLATE and School Wide Positive Behaviours. CSPV encourage you to learn from your school what these programs teach your children.

This will help you to understand the approaches they are using and to further understand how you can support their learning about safety at home by reinforcing messages and having conversations about feeling safe and what to do if they don't feel safe.

There are various resources available for parents to access on how to talk with children about child safety. Story books are a great way to share messages with young children and have discussions in an empowering way, by giving children the tools to be able to say no if they are unsure of someone, to feel confident to raise any alarms with a trusted adult or protect themselves from harm.

Kid Central Resources

One activity you might like to try with your children is helping them to understand when they feel safe and what that feels like - they are then able to identify when they don't feel safe and discuss what to do when this happens.

The following resource was developed by ACU KidsCentral. The resources are primarily for teachers to use in the classroom, however they can also be used by you as parents or carers to explore different ways to have conversations about safety.

Daniel Morcombe - Keeping Kids Safe Resources

Many schools use this curriculum to teach children about child safety. On this website you will find videos and activities for children of all ages, including for teenagers. As we know teenagers face other challenges when it comes to their safety, grooming and knowing when it's ok to say no if they are asked to do something against their will.

Self respect and self awareness are critical skills we need to teach our children, to ensure they are able to feel they can speak up and protect themselves from harm.

Below is a sample of the types of resources you will find on this website for parents and carers.  Conversation starters are a great resource for starting the conversation with your children. Click on the link to view the resource for children aged 6-10. There are similar resources for all age groups that have been designed to be age appropriate.